Easy open containers are in wide use today, particularly in the soft drink and fruit juice industry. The top lids of these containers are usually opened by either punching a hole, removing a pre-scored pull tab, or by removing a tape tab that covers one or more pre-formed dispensing apertures. While these easy open containers have proved to be a tremendous commercial success, they are the source of three major consumer complaints. First, dirt and other foreign matter tend to accumulate on the container's top lid during shipping and storage. When a consumer drinks the product directly from the container, the person's lips come into direct contact with the contaminated top surface. Second, if the product is not entirely consumed, foreign matter can easily enter the opened container during storage. Finally, once opened, the container cannot be resealed and subsequently shaken to redistribute suspended solids such as orange juice pulp.
It is well known in the art to provide a container with an overcap to prevent dust and dirt from contaminating the container's top lid and, ultimately, the product itself, as for example shown by the embodiments in U.S. Pat. No. 3,419,181. However, once the container has been opened, these overcaps cannot be used to reseal the container's dispensing orifice to allow subsequent shaking of the container. Accordingly, it is a principal object of the present invention to provide a container with an overcap assembly that prevents dust and dirt from accumulating on the container's top lid and that also sufficiently reseals the container after initial opening to allow the unused product to be shaken.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a container with a protective, resealing overcap that may be hinged to or fully removable from the container's top lid.
It is yet another object of the present invention to enhance a container's aesthetic appearance by covering the container's top lid with a protective, resealing overcap having a top surface suitable for printed graphics and labeling.